Money Management Executive Latest News

NEW YORK - Selling mutual funds offshore holds great potential, but it is complicated and requires local expertise, agreed mutual fund executives at a forum here last month.

The Investment Company Institute's new voluntary guidelines for mutual fund directors could increase the turnover of fund directors by more than one-third in the next five years, according to an industry consultant.

Competition between Internet funds has heated up so much that they are grabbing at every possible opportunity to build market share.

A division of U.S. Trust Co. of Boston is managing two socially-conscious index funds that depart from their peers by trying to beat the S&P 500 rather than special indexes filled with socially-screened stocks.

Fidelity Investments of Boston has created a new index fund of funds. The new fund, the Fidelity Four-in-One Index Fund, invests in the Spartan Market, the Spartan Extended Market, the Spartan International and the Fidelity U.S. Bond index funds. The fund will invest 55 percent of assets in the Spartan Market Index Fund, which mimics the Standard & Poor's 500 Index, and split remaining assets equally between the three other funds.

NEW YORK - Speakers at the Offshore Fund Forum outlined substantial opportunities abroad and said that the mutual fund industry cannot ignore the overseas market if it wants to continue to grow.

One of the familiar figures of the mutual fund industry, whose bearlike image instilled confidence, has died.

Putnam Investments of Boston has joined with the Thomas H. Lee Company of Boston, a venture capital firm, to form a partnership which will permit Putnam to sell stakes in venture capital funds and other investment products to institutions and advisors serving high-net-worth investors. The partnership, to be known as TH Lee, Putnam Capital, plans to offer its first fund by Dec. 31. Putnam will have a 25 percent stake in the partnership, with Lee owning the balance. Putnam also has acquired a stake in Lee. Terms of that arrangement were not disclosed.

Waddell & Reed Financial of Overland Park, Kan., has agreed to acquire Austin, Calvert & Flavin of San Antonio, Texas. The companies announced the deal on June 29. The purchase price was not disclosed.

ING Funds Trust of Philadelphia, Pa., made its ING Internet Fund available to the public on July 6. But already, the fund company is talking about closing the fund.